Enlighten Me, Caged Bird
by SlyTiger
Summary: *HIATUS* Tora Maisie is an aspiring marine. She was assigned to Impel Down prison right after training. She's always been curious about why pirates become pirates. That's why she's excited to be working at a prison. The day she arrives a high profile prisoner is being brought in by ship. Who is this mysterious pirate? How will they change Tora's out look on life?
1. Prologue

**Hey guys! This is my first story and I'm excited to share this with you. I'm not sure how long it will be or how long it will take. I DO NOT OWN ONE PIECE. I AM SIMPLY A FAN.**

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 **Prologue**

Impel Down is a five-level maximum-security prison facility where the most heinous pirates and criminals are kept. Located in the Calm Belt, all levels except for the top floor are located underwater. Impel Down is virtually impossible to escape from. Once you make it outside the walls, the water surrounding the building is infested with sea kings. There has only been three notable escapes on Impel Down's untarnished record. The First was Shiki the Golden Lion. Next was Monkey D. Luffy and companions and finally Black Beard and his crew. The last two groups are most impressive. They managed to break into Impel Down, which has never happened before and then free prisoners and escape with their lives.

Tora Maisie, a cheerful individual, is a relatively average girl. Her medium length brown hair is kept in a braid most of the time. Her bangs are swept to the left side of her face and she clips them back while on duty. She has no special powers and is not inhumanly strong. She has always looked up to the marines. Ever since she was young she has wanted to be a marine herself. Later in in life she developed an interest in the justice systems and more specifically prisons. She wanted to be the one to keep the horrible criminals locked up tight and figure out why they did bad things.

Fresh out of training Tora, was transferred to the naval facility known as Impel Down. Officer training was rough to say the least but she went through it. Now she was entering the facility she dreamed of working at. Being a jailer seems like an odd choice of occupation, for Tora it serves to fulfill her curiosities. All her life she's wanted to know what makes people tick. She's wanted to keep criminals locked away so they can no longer harm anyone ever again. Most of all she's wanted to make sense of why bad people do bad things.


	2. Chapter 1: The Arrival

**I'm back with another chapter. I hope I did well! I DO NOT OWN ONE PIECE. I AM SIMPLY A FAN.**

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 **Chapter 1: The Arrival**

Today is a very exciting day indeed. Tora has just arrived at Impel Down only hours before a high-profile prisoner is due to arrive. She wants to squeal in excitement.

 _Keep calm. Stay professional. Don't screw up this first impression_ _._ Tora told herself.

She wants to make sure that she's respected and not looked down on for being new and inexperienced. Acting immature so early on in her formal employment will make her seem unreliable.

Tora and three others enter the vice warden's office for briefing. Magellan, the former chief warden, was going to explain their duties while working at the prison. Once prompted to enter his office he was nowhere to be found. The only clue that he was still around was the loud groans coming from the door behind his desk. A flushing sound can be heard and Magellan appears and makes his way to his chair.

"Ugh please excuse me, all the poison just goes right through me. Now time to get to business."Magellan starts.

"I am the Vice Warden of Impel Down. Impel Down is made up of five different levels that house the prisoners. The highest levels hold the most horrible criminals. These levels are the furthest underwater."

Magellan took a breather and placed a hand over his midsection. Sweat was beading down on his forehead. His stomach let out another fearsome grumble. He then continued to press on with his explanation.

"Level 1, the Crimson Hell, this area is a forest full of red trees made up of blades. The least known prisoners are kept here. Level 2, Wild Beast Hell, it is a large maze full of man eating beast. Level 3, Starvation Hell, much like it entitles. It's a desert like area and each prisoner has a bounty 50 million or higher. Level 4, Blazing Hell, in the center there is a gigantic pot of boiling blood hot enough to heat up all the surrounding areas. Prisoners from other levels are often taken here to be punished. Level 5, Freezing Hell, criminals with bounties over 100 million are kept here. The entire level is a large freeze and is guarded by wolves."

Magellan takes another breath as his stomach continues to rumble louder. Tora and the other trainees have been listening patiently. Tora doesn't know what to think. This place sounds so huge and dangerous. Her previous excitement has been replaced with cautious curiosity and fear. The Vice Warden clears his throat to recapture the trainees' attention.

"Now, you four have not been assigned positions yet. You will follow me and Chief Warden Hannyabal, we feel it is important for you to see the process as to how a prisoner is brought in and registered."

As if on cue the transponder snail rings. Hannyabal informs Magellan that the ship has arrived with the prisoner and is to meet him at the gate. With a [not so quick] trip to the bathroom Magellan, and the trainees, head for the entrance of Impel Down.


	3. Chapter 2: The Stage is Set

**Hello all! I'm back with another chapter and have finally revealed who the prisoner is! He's my favorite character right now and I had to make a story about him. I wasn't sure how to go about it at first I think this will work. I apologize if this wasn't the person you guys were expecting. I'm too passive for my own good =P I just like his crazy. Please enjoy!**

 **I DO NOT OWN ONE PIECE. I AM SIMPLY A FAN.**

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 **Chapter 2: The Stage is Set**

Tora and the trainees saluted and say 'yes sir!' before following Magellan out of the office. They weren't far from the entrance luckily. As the small group drew closer, Tora noticed the jailers are all at attention and on alert in the halls. They are all prepared to 'welcome' the newest 'guest' so to speak.

"Chief Warden Hannyabl, sir." Magellan reluctantly greeted.

"Chief Guard Saldeath," he is the master of the blue gorillas and level 2's beast.

"Chief Guard Sadi-chan," A sadistic, scantily dressed women who has power over the jailer beasts.

"And Head Jailer Domino." She practically runs the prison if Hannyabl or Magellan are unavailable.

Great Staff Officer Tsuru, who is one of the navy vice admirals, walks in through the gate just as Magellan finishes greeting his coworkers. Hannyabl and Magellan welcome Vice Admiral Tsuru and the two other marines following behind her.

"Welcomes to this fine establishment! As it would happen I have finally achieved my dream by removing Magellan from his position…*cough cough*…I mean the position I rightfully earned after years of dedicated work." Hannyabl says cheerfully.

"Welcome Vice Admiral," adds Magellan.

"Hello and yes Chief Warden indeed. Now would you, your Vice Warden and chief guards help with escorting the prisoner off my ship now." Tsuru gently demands more than requests.

He is very dangerous as they all know and needs to be treated with the upmost caution. Without out a surprising amount of screaming or cursing the prisoner, a very tall built man, is practically dragged out of the ship's haul grinning madly. He's wearing sunglasses of all things along with the standard black and white prison uniform. He's bound head-to-toe in shackles of some kind, Tora is almost positive those chains are made of sea prism stone. She finds his demeanor rather unsettling. How could anyone seem so happy or confident about going to prison? What is his up with him?

"The infamous warlord, excuse me, former warlord Donquixote Doflamingo. The so called great pirate has finally fallen." Hannyabl taunted.

The prisoner's grin only grew wider. Slowly he started to chuckled. It soon turned into a full-blown laugher.

"Fufufu… at least I AM strong. Strong enough to kick your ass into oblivion. With me gone all the lowly fish will be fighting for power, eager to claim my former position! I may be imprisoned now but your work only got ten times harder!"

Doflamingo bellowed out these words and continued to manically laugh all the while. Hannyabl was fuming. He'd had enough of the prisoner's insults and punched him right in the face. Before Hannyabl could continue Domino advise him to behave and not offend Vice Admiral Tsuru by starting a needless fight. Doflamingo ceased his laughing but remained smiling even while blood trickled down from his lip.

Brushing the invisible dust off his uniform Hannyabl said "Enough with you, you bastard pirate. Let's take him away. It's time for him to be baptized." Hannyabl quickly changed to a more authoritative tone as he barks out instructions.

Magellan motions for Tora and the other trainees to follow the group of higher ups. They enter a room with a large pot of boiling water. A strange device hung over the pot and was connected to a platform. Gigantic flames spewed out from under the three-story tall cauldron. The room's temperature was significantly higher than that of the hallway. The stone walls trapped the heat inside making the room feel like a large furnace. Tora shifted uncomfortably in the heat. She discreetly fanned herself while Domino and Magellan got the strange contraption ready. They began hooking up the prisoner to the end of the contraction. Tora's eyes went wide. She shut them tight at the realization she had just come to. In slight horror, she knew what Hannyabl meant by 'baptizing.' He was going to dunk the prisoner into that boiling water.

She felt no sympathy towards this Doflamingo character but she couldn't imagine the amount of pain that would be. The flames heated up the room, just thinking of how hot that water must be made her cringe. Then Tora heard it. Those words and the sound of splashing.

"Lower him," Hannyabl commanded. *SPLASH*

 _Oh my god! Eek!_ Tora couldn't help herself from letting out a small noise of fright.

She slapped her hands over her mouth. Magellan looked over at her and squinted a bit. Tora bowed slightly in apology. The splashing noise could be heard a few more times but the prisoner made not noise of his own.

Tora closed her eyes again just praying this would end quickly. She wasn't quite prepared for this and feels embarrassed by her behavior and maybe the slightest concern for the prisoner but she shoved that feeling down quickly.

They left that room almost as fast as they had entered. Bidding farewell to Vice Admiral Tsuru, the rest of them made their way to the elevator. Hannyabl dismissed Chief Guard Saldeath and Sadi-chan to continue their duties. Magellan told the trainees to wait there until he returned. They were headed for a place the general staff couldn't go. Tora let out a relieved sigh. This whole ordeal was a bit overwhelming for her. Her first day on the job was turning out to be interesting; downright crazy too when Hannyabl spoke up one last time.

"You there, on the end."

Tora pointed to herself.

Hannyabl continued, "yes you, now come with us."

 _Huh?! Why me?!_ Tora was too shocked to move for a second. She was new. Why would the chief warden possibly need her?

"Get a move one! Chief Warden knows what he's doing," Domino said off hand.

Reluctantly Tora left the other trainees behind and made her way onto the elevator with her superiors. Why she was going she didn't know but the prisoner's constant low laughter was unsettling to her. She'll find out why she was needed soon because the elevator began to drop.

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 **Author's note: Im sorry Im taking so long to update! I have most of the next chapter done! i hope to upload the next part by the end of this week.**


	4. Chapter 3: Why Me!

**Hello wonderful readers. I'm finally uploading the next chapter. I had a bit of writers block and this chapter ended up being a bit short. I hope to update this story with the next chapter before christmas. wish me luck! I hope you all enjoy! I DON NOT OWN ONE PIECE I AM SIMPLY A FAN.**

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 **Chapter 3: Why Me?!**

 _I don't understand this. What is the chief warden thinking?! I'm a newbie for crying out loud! Why would he need me?_

Tora's thoughts were in complete turmoil. She felt so uneasy. She didn't know what to make of this whole situation. Nervously, Tora kept shifting her weight from foot to foot and began to fidget with the hem of her shirt. She kept her gaze focused on the floor but she could feel someone's eyes watching her. This only increased her anxiety.

The elevator ride was agonizingly slow. She had stepped in next to Domino, which the closest she could get to the prisoner. But he wasn't who she was worried about right now. With a soft ding, the elevator stopped. They must have reached the fifth level.

 _Great, the frozen hell,_ Tora was not thrilled. She had always hated the cold.

The elevator door opened revealing a short hallway that lead towards a stair case. Not exactly what Tora was expecting.

"Out with you," Hannyabl shoved the prisoner out first. Doflamingo just snickered.

Hannyabl began to speak, "Personal assistant…I mean…Domino, will you please explain to the newbie where we are. Magellan and I can't be bother with that now. We're going on ahead. Meet us down the stairs when you are done."

"Yes Chief Warden," Domino agreed. "Alright newbie, first tell me your name. I find it unprofessional to not know the names of the people under my jurisdiction."

"Tora Maisie, Ma'am."

"Excellent. We are now in the last level of Impel Down, Level 6. Yes I figured you were told there were only 5 levels. That is incorrect. Level 6 is a need to know level and the general jailers aren't aware or allowed down here. I don't know what Hannyabl has in mind but he knows what he's doing." Domino finished talking and motion for Tora to follow her down the stairs.

Domino's explanation didn't really clear anything up. It only served to confuse Tora further. Realizing she was still standing in front of the elevator, Tora jogged towards Domino in an effort to catch up.

Descending the long spiral stair case, Tora and Domino reached level 6's main floor. Spread out before them were rows and rows of cells full of criminals. Tora stood in awe at the sight before her. There were so many highly dangerous people packed like sardines on this one floor. At the end of the row that the spiral stair case ended in front of, Tora could see Hannyabl and Magellan. Domino began walking towards them with Tora in tow. Wolf whistles and cat calls echo around them as they moved. This made Tora rather uncomfortable but she hid this feeling.

Domino completely ignore the obscene comments and advances made towards her, not that the inmates had any power to force her. A few called out to Tora, commenting on her figure or how tiny she was. She was average height, 5"4 but compared to everyone else she really was tiny. This made her feel inferior.

Magellan and Hannyabl were talking. They seemed to be discussing why Tora was down here with them. She couldn't make out what they were saying but she heard the them say 'newbie' or 'trainee.' Magellan sounded very irritated. Tora suspects that he was the one glaring at her in the elevator.

Once Tora and Domino approached, the two males ceased their discussion. Clearing his throat to dispel the sudden silence, Hannyabl said "Welcome to level 6, I am hereby assigning you to this level, newbie."

Magellan's face was set in a frown. He obviously did not approve of this decision. He kept his thoughts to himself though after Hannyabl had already announced his decision.

Tora was dumbfounded. Yes, it will be her job to guard and make sure the prisoners stay locked up tight but when it comes to these prisoners there is absolutely nothing she could do to stop them if they were to escape. She'd be mowed down. Against her better judgment Tora spoke. She stood up straight and saluted.

"Chief Warden sir, are you sure this is wise? I mean, I just started today and don't know much of what I'm doing…I also don't think my presence will be all that prevalent down here…" Tora was cut off immediately.

"Are YOU questioning my decision newbie?!" Hannyabl yelled.

"NO SIR." Tora did not dare speak after that. She stayed silent and obeyed. Soon she'll figure out why she was assigned her but for now she'll just stand quietly.

Hannybal turned away from her to look at the prisoner in his cell. Magellan subtilely glared at the chief warden. He was clearly upset. Domino then pulled Tora aside and began to explain the main duties of a jailer and the difference in duties while working in level 6.

Tora mutely nodded as she talked. She did not hear what Domino was saying. She was too shocked and quite frankly frightened. Tora knew what she had gotten herself into but starting out with such a high level job was fraying her nerves. Hopefully Hannybal will further explain why he made his decision.

Satisfied that the prisoner was locked up tight, Hannyabl turned towards the stairs and began to walk. Magellan followed shortly after. Hannyabl called out to Domino over his shoulder.

"Train her fast, Personal Assistant...I mean Domino. She's going to need it." The chief warden chuckled at his own words.

Tora's face contorted into an expression of horror. Had he placed her down here to die or something?!

As Magellan and Hannybal made their way back to the stairs, Magellan had to question the chief warden.

"What were you thinking? Assigning that trainee down here. She has no experience. We very well may have thrown her to the wolves instead."

"Oh calm down," Hannyabal cut in, "She'll be fine. Domino will be working with her each day until she can make it on her own. Besides I didnt want to take the time to baby sit the dumbass warlord. And I'm not sending any of my good marines down here to watch him anyway. Might as well train a new one and have that be their one and only job. Better than wasting my current staffs' talents."

Magellan shook his head at Hannybal's logic. That newbie was not going to last long. He'll be expecting her in his office soon to demand a reassignment. Magellan would bet money on it.

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In the corner of his cell, Doflamingo can be heard softly laughing at the scene before him. He found this incredibly amusing. A newbie, assigned down here, what foolishness. It'll make things interesting. Maybe he won't be so bored after all.


	5. Chapter 4: Intense Eyes

**I met my deadline! I uploaded before Christmas! I'm so proud of myself. I hope you guys enjoy!**

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Chapter 4: Intense Eyes

Metal scraping against metal, the clanging of bars and chains filled the hidden level of Impel Down, deafeningly so. If you listened closely, far off sounds of chatter among the inmates could be heard. The binding chains of a fallen pirate rattled and clattered together loudly behind Tora's back. Sighing, Tora made no moves to turn towards the sound. The inmate behind her had a habit of being talkative when spoken too, obscenely loud and obnoxious. His behavior infuriated her but alas Tora kept her thoughts quiet, she did not want to add more fuel to the fire. If she even quipped about his strangeness of the criminal in her charge, he would talk her ear off for hours. The chuckling and soft laughter filtering through Doflamingo's lips was slowly grating on her last nerves.

Tora sat unhappily in her chair while bouncing her leg up and down, anything would be more entertaining than sitting down in the bowels of Impel Down guarding his cell. She was incredibly worried about guard duty being hard and pointless when she first started a few weeks ago, now she just feels like a babysitter. Tora finally stood up after correcting her necktie to face the incarcerated man behind her. Doflamingo and all his glory was casually flipping through his newspaper, well as casual as you can being bound in chains from head to toe, and paid no mind to her sudden movement. He was a mountain of a man clad in his prison attire and bizarre sunglasses. Locked up he was very hard to take seriously. Somehow or another he had convinced the Chief Warden to give him one every day and guess who's job it was to deliver it to him, Tora's.

"You're being awful loud, something you need, that you know you won't get?" Her bored tone caught Doflamingo's attention.

"Fufufu…feeling comfortable around me eh? Where'd your sassy attitude come from?"

"That is none of your concern, prisoner," Tora barked out, with a huff she turned around and plopped back into her chair. She does not even know why she bothers to speak to this man. They are from two separate worlds after all. He is a, albeit, former warlord, Tora was a marine. He is a prisoner and she is his jailer.

At first Tora was so apprehensive about entering his cell, Domino's so called encouragements did not help either. Just ignore him she said. He's chained up and can't do anything she said. Well that wasn't much comfort. During the first week of Doflamingo's imprisonment, he managed to kill a jailer while still being heavily bound! Doflamingo even went as far to say that the jailer had offended him and decided he was doing Impel Down a favor by taking care of him. Yeah right. Either way no similar incident has happened since then (Tora was made the sole guard and contact for Doflamingo and his behavior has improve since then especially after he was denied his newspaper for a week.) Doflamingo seems to have grown fond of Tora and it weirds her out, she's done nothing to warrant his attention nor does she want it.

Regardless of the inmates strange behavior that Tora was not prepared for, she is grateful for his cooperation and the training Domino gave her even though it was all useless when it came to this man. The prisoner has made no moves to attempt an escape or even harm Tora physically. Doflamingo was a complete mystery, he seemed almost excited each time Tora handed over his newspaper and when Tora speaks more than two words to him. Why someone so powerful would want to talk to a simple guard was beyond Tora's comprehension, it was most likely because she was the prisoner's only form of human interaction since he was sentenced to Impel Down and made himself a nuisance to her and the other jailers.

Tora snapped out of her daze when she heard the ripping of paper and angry mutters. She quickly spun around in her chair to see Doflamingo making a mess of his beloved newspaper. Printed script littered the cell floor around Doflamingo's sitting form. Tora arched one of her eyebrows at the scene before her. What could have possibly upset the man so much that he'd tear through the paper so violently?

"Hey, what are you doing?" Tora called out to him.

She had risen from her place on her chair and walked over to the cell door. She had to squint her eyes to see the man because of the lack of light in his cell. Tora waited patiently for him to respond but she was only greeted with silence as he had finished his task of mutilating the newspaper. She waited a few more minutes in hopes that he would answer her after all, in this building she was his superior after all. When she heard nothing Tora decided it was best to leave Doflamingo alone. If he did get violent then there is no telling what he could do to her if she stepped into his cell. Due to her nerves, Tora brushed off the invisible dust on her uniform and walked back the few feet to her chair. A soft plopping noise sounded throughout the hallway where she made camp. She could see other cells and prisoners from where she sat but it was a great enough distance that none bothered to communicate with her unless they shouted. Another reason Tora was left alone was because of Doflamingo's presence. Yes, the rest of the criminals here were just as dangerous if not more so than Doflamingo, but none dared to speak with him. When some prisoners were vying for Tora's attention because she was a woman Tora had felt an incredibly ominous aura flare to life behind her back. She remembered being too frozen with fear to even turn around but she knew Doflamingo was glaring daggers into anyone who dared look in her direction. Whatever the reason was that he had acted so, Tora dare say, protective over her was such a mystery but one thing became clear to Tora. She had felt the intense stare before. It wasn't Magellan who she previously thought that stared straight through her back in the elevator, it was in fact Doflamingo.

All the hairs on Tora's body stood on end. Her eyes grew wide and her entire demeanor became defensive. A large hand clamped down on her shoulder startling her. Slowly Tora turned her head towards the prison cell. She was greeted by Doflamingo's smiling face, his grin stretched wide like the Cheshire Cat. He let out a mischievous laugh. There is no way he should be able to reach out and touch Tora through the bars, and yet he was. She looked at his hand and traced his arm back to his body. He'd twisted and contorted his arms and body in a somewhat uncomfortable way just to touch her. He then began to gently massage the area on her shoulder that he was touching.

"Dear, would you be so kind as to clean up the mess on my floor when you get the chance? I'd hate for my space to be unpresentable to your superiors…fufufu." His voice sounded as smooth as silk and in the low light he looked devastatingly charming. A deep red blush spread across Tora's face. Unable to form a proper thought all Tora could manage was a simple nod. His tone of voice left no room for argument.

After a long tense minute, Doflamingo released his hold on Tora and walked back to the spot he previously occupied. Without being able to see his face she knew he wore a triumphant smile, she could feel it in her core. Her shoulder tingled from the contact of his large palm pressing against the fabric of her uniform. She shook her head to clear out the surprise of the encounter and placed her hand over her red cheeks, attempting to hide her embarrassment. She had let him get to her, she'd let him affect her in a way only a lover could. His simple request felt like sweet words he was using to woo her. Tora was angry, not at Doflamingo but herself. She never wanted to admit this but from the moment she laid eyes upon the prisoner she'd found him attractive. Tora had thought she'd killed those feelings and buried them deep inside, replacing them with hatred and contempt. Not too long ago when she was assigned to guard Doflamingo, she had learned about everything he'd done. All the sadness, fear and hatred that he'd spread under his rule as the king of Dressrosa and as a warlord, the powers he possessed hurt people and here Tora was having thoughts of attraction for this horrible man.

She knew she could not forge any sort of connection with him. She has to keep herself strictly professional, no eye contact and as little speech as possible otherwise he may just break her. She had to reply to him, she had to show him that she was strong. She felt a great need to prove herself to Doflamingo.

"Do not ever touch me again." She declared proudly, while crossing her arms over her chest. Tora sat up straight and refused to look at the prisoner behind her. She knew her resolve would weaken if she stared at his handsome face. It took all her strength to not turn around and march into his cell. She was seething with rage and a strong desire to punch Doflamingo. He had begun to laugh at her. He mocked her words. He laughed at her inability to resist him with all her might.

"You'll come around…fufufu…it won't be long now. You can't keep up this tough guy act. You won't be able to resist me." Doflamingo stated in his arrogantly confidant tone.

 _I hope you're wrong,_ Tora thought.

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 **I'm not sure when I'll be able to write the next chapter but I have an idea of where I'm heading. Hopefully I'll have the next part uploaded by the middle of January folks. Thanks for taking the time to read!**


	6. Notice: Im so sorry!

**Attention!**

Sorry my dear followers. I have hit a massive rode block these past few months and writers block is no fun at all. I've tried writing this story and I started another in hopes to regain my mojo. Ya, I got absorbed in this new work. I apologize profusely for the long wait and even longer one to come. I'm placing this story on a temporary hiatus. I hope to regain my rhythm soon.


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